Adamawa govt warns residents against farming, construction on waterways

Adamawa govt warns residents against farming, construction on waterways

The Adamawa government has warned residents against farming, building structures, and dumping refuse on waterways ahead of the 2026 rainy season.

Mrs Syngana Dahdah, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment, gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Yola.

Dahdah urged residents occupying water channels to vacate immediately to prevent unnecessary loss of lives and property during flooding.

“Many residents have diverted natural waterways into residential buildings and farmlands, thereby obstructing the free flow of water.

“We are appealing to them to stop farming, building structures, and dumping refuse on waterways as the rainy season approaches,” she said.

According to her, water channels are natural passages that must remain open, warning that blocked waterways often result in severe flooding during heavy rainfall.

“No matter how long it takes, water will always find its way and so blocking waterways with buildings or farms only exposes communities to danger,” she added.

The permanent secretary also advised farmers against cultivating in flood-prone areas and drainage paths, noting that such activities could affect agricultural productivity and increase erosion.

Dahdah said that the ministry had forwarded a memo to Gov. Ahmadu Fintiri on the desilting and reconstruction of some drainage along the Shagari and Yolde Pate axis of Yola South Local Government Area (LGA).

She said the affected areas experienced severe flooding during the 2025 rainy season due to blocked drains and poor water flow.

According to her, some embankments raised during irrigation activities last year also contributed to flooding in some parts of the state.

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Dahdah said the government would remove the embankments since irrigation activities had ended and the structures were no longer needed.

She advised residents whose houses had been marked for demolition and had been compensated by the government to vacate the affected areas without delay.

Dahda said that the government would soon commence demolition and drainage expansion projects to reduce the impact of flooding on vulnerable communities.

She, however, expressed concern over reports that some of the victims of flooding who were compensated allegedly sold the affected houses to unsuspecting buyers instead of vacating them.

“It is unfortunate that some individuals collected compensation from the government and still sold the same houses to innocent people despite knowing the structures would be demolished,” she said.